Discrimination:
Definition, Types & Comparison

Discrimination at work is unfair treatment of an employee or job applicant based on protected characteristics such as race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age (40 or older), disability, genetic information, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy, marital status, or military status. This unlawful conduct occurs when employers make employment decisions, including hiring, firing, promotion, compensation, or assignment of duties, based on these protected characteristics rather than qualifications, performance, or legitimate business needs.

Workplace discrimination violates federal laws enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. State laws, such as California's Fair Employment and Housing Act, often provide additional protections and cover employers with as few as five employees.

Discrimination can be direct (explicit bias) or indirect (neutral policies that disproportionately harm protected groups). It encompasses hiring refusals, unequal pay, denied promotions, hostile work environments, harassment, and retaliation against employees who report discriminatory practices.

Related terms: harassment, retaliation, disparate treatment, disparate impact, protected class

There are 8 primary types of workplace discrimination:

• Race Discrimination – Unfair treatment based on race, color, or racial background. More than one-third of EEOC claims each year are race-based, making this the most frequently reported form of workplace discrimination.
• Disability Discrimination – Discrimination against workers with mental or physical impairments that substantially limit major life activities, including failure to provide reasonable accommodations. Disability claims represent approximately one-third of all EEOC complaints.
• Pregnancy Discrimination – Unfair treatment of expecting or new mothers, including refusal to hire pregnant applicants, denial of leave, elimination of positions during maternity leave, or failure to accommodate breastfeeding.
• Gender Discrimination – Differential treatment based on gender, manifesting as failure to hire, lack of leadership training, promotion denial, pay inequality, or penalization for traits valued in male employees.
• Age Discrimination – Bias against workers 40 years or older. Statistics show more than half of workers over 50 lose longtime jobs before they are ready to retire, and older job-seekers face longer unemployment periods than younger workers.
• Sexual Orientation Discrimination – Unfair treatment based on sexual orientation or gender identity. EEOC charges increased from 1,857 in 2020 to 2,229 in 2022.
• Religious Discrimination – Bias against employees for their religious beliefs, often taking the form of harassment, retaliation for religious observances, or exclusion from public-facing roles due to religious clothing.
• Parental Status Discrimination – While not directly illegal, this often violates other anti-discrimination laws when based on gendered assumptions about mothers versus fathers, such as penalizing men for taking baby bonding leave or assuming women with children don't prioritize work.

There are 7 warning signs that indicate potential workplace discrimination:

1. Unfair Treatment – Being held to different standards than others, including higher performance expectations, different arrival times, or longer working hours when you are the only person in the office treated that way and share a protected class characteristic.
2. Derogatory Comments or Jokes – Offensive comments or jokes about your race, religion, sex, age, or other protected characteristics. These remain inappropriate regardless of whether the speaker claims "it's just a joke."
3. Exclusion – Consistently being left out of meetings, social business events, or important communications relevant to your job, particularly when schedule conflicts are not accommodated.
4. Unequal Pay – Receiving less compensation than others in the same position with similar or more experience and qualifications, particularly when those paid more belong to a different protected class.
5. Denied Opportunities – Consistently being denied promotions, training opportunities, or other benefits given to other employees with similar qualifications and job performance.
6. Change in Job Duties Without Justification – Responsibilities reduced, drastically increased, or changed abruptly and unnecessarily, such as being randomly assigned to less desirable departments or tasks you were not hired to perform.
7. Favoritism – Employer favors certain employees over others who share characteristics or lack characteristics of the favored employee, excluding differences in work ethic and documented performance.

Discrimination causes 4 major negative impacts on employees who suffer or witness unlawful treatment:

• Sleep deprivation
• Stress-related illness
• Low morale
• Poor mental health

These health effects prevent employees from performing their best at work and compel many to leave employment altogether. The negative impacts occur not only from overt discrimination but also from implicit bias and microaggressions, which create chronic stress and health complications for those targeted.

Microaggressions are subtle forms of discriminatory behavior that include comments like "I am surprised at how good your English is" or "Where are you really from?" While their inappropriate nature can be felt by victims, the impact of these moments is often difficult to describe to others.

Workplace harassment is unwelcome conduct based on a person's race, color, religion, sex, national origin, older age, disability, or genetic information. Harassment includes offensive jokes, objects, or pictures, name-calling, physical assaults and threats, and intimidation.

Harassment becomes unlawful when enduring the conduct is required to continue employment or when it creates a work environment that is intimidating, hostile, or abusive. Sexual harassment specifically includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, or offensive comments about someone's sex.

Harassment is prohibited in all workplaces, even those with fewer than five employees, unlike other discrimination protections that require minimum employee counts. State regulations define sexual harassment as unwanted sexual advances or visual, verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature, including gender-based harassment of a person of the same sex as the harasser.

Retaliation occurs when an employer treats someone poorly because they engaged in a protected activity. Protected activities include filing or being a witness in an EEOC charge or investigation, talking to a supervisor or manager about discrimination or harassment, refusing to follow orders that would result in discrimination, and resisting sexual advances or intervening to protect others.

Common retaliation methods include firing, demotion, denying benefits, denying promotions, and intimidation or threats. Employees who engage in protected activity are shielded from retaliation for doing so under both federal and state law.

Report discrimination to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) using their public portal to follow the complaint process. You can submit an online inquiry, schedule an interview with someone from the EEOC, or submit a charge of discrimination.

In most cases, you must file a charge within 180 calendar days of the discriminatory act. Some jurisdictions extend this to 300 days. You can also report discrimination to your local Fair Employment Practices Agency (FEPA). If the discrimination violates both state and federal law, the FEPA will send your complaint to the EEOC.

Federal employees should report discrimination to the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) office at the agency where it occurred within 45 calendar days. Document each occurrence by taking notes regarding when it happened, where it happened, what exactly was said or done, how you reacted, and who else witnessed it.

Time limits for filing discrimination complaints vary by jurisdiction and complaint type. For EEOC complaints, you must file within 180 calendar days in most cases, though some states extend this to 300 days.

California's Civil Rights Department requires complaints of employment discrimination to be filed within three years from the date the alleged discriminatory act occurred. Colorado requires employment discrimination complaints within 300 days. Housing discrimination complaints in California must be filed within one year, while Colorado allows one year as well. Public accommodation discrimination complaints in Colorado must be filed within 60 days.

Federal employees must follow the EEO complaint process within 45 calendar days. Missing these deadlines typically bars your complaint from being heard, so prompt action is essential.

State and federal law provide 9 categories of remedies for victims of employment discrimination:

• Back pay (past lost earnings)
• Front pay (future lost earnings)
• Hiring or reinstatement
• Promotion
• Out-of-pocket expenses
• Policy changes
• Training
• Reasonable accommodation(s)
• Damages for emotional distress
• Punitive damages
• Attorney's fees and costs

The specific remedies available depend on the type of discrimination, the jurisdiction, and the severity of the violation. Victims receive 100% of any remedies recovered when the Civil Rights Department litigates on their behalf, with the exception of attorney fees and costs.

Workplace discrimination is often compared to 3 related employment law concepts:

Workplace Discrimination vs. Harassment

Workplace discrimination involves adverse employment actions such as failure to hire, termination, demotion, or unequal pay based on protected characteristics. Harassment is unwelcome conduct based on protected characteristics that creates an intimidating, hostile, or abusive work environment. Harassment becomes unlawful when enduring it is required to continue employment or when it alters employment conditions, while discrimination directly impacts job opportunities and terms of employment.

Workplace Discrimination vs. Retaliation

Discrimination occurs when employment decisions are based on inherent protected characteristics like race, gender, age, or disability. Retaliation occurs when employers punish employees for engaging in protected activities such as filing discrimination complaints, participating in investigations, or opposing discriminatory practices. While discrimination targets who you are, retaliation targets what you do to assert your rights.

Workplace Discrimination vs. Occupational Segregation

Workplace discrimination is unfair treatment of individual employees or applicants based on protected characteristics. Occupational segregation is the systemic overrepresentation or underrepresentation of demographic groups in particular occupations or fields, resulting in workers of color being disproportionately channeled into the most dangerous and underpaid jobs. Discrimination can contribute to occupational segregation, but occupational segregation reflects broader structural barriers beyond individual employer actions.